National Republican., 1887-07-06

"
The Washington Presbytery met yester-
day morning at 1918 In the New York
Avenue Presbyterian Church, and the trial
of the Rev. Francis NJ. Todd was contin-
ued. The moderator, Rev. DR.. French,
opened the proceedings with prayer; the
roll was then called, and all was ready for
business. A large map, showing clearly
the territory covered by tho evidence, was
hung from the archway over the moder
ator's head, and it assisted materially In
helping both Witnesses and counsel In the
elucidbtion OF their statements.
The vacancies In the judicial committee,
caused by DR.. Childs's acceptance of posi-
tion as c. unset for the prosecution and the
absence of DR.. Fullerton, will, on motion
Of Dr. Hamilton, filed by the appointment
With the consent Of DIR. Sunderland DR..
Childs introduced aflidayits for the prose.
cution from I. b. Mitchell, j. b. Warier,
Homer Shaefer, David Shaefer, Emma
Shaefer, and Phoebe Shaefer. The testi-
mony In them was almost entirely negative.
The moderator then called upon the
DEFENSE TO OPEN THEIR CASE,
and Dr. Sunderland responded as follows:
Moderator and brethren: All that be.
confidently expect to contradict the only
accusing witness, Turner, In every material
and vital point OF the story. SO far as IL re-
lates to the Rev. Francis NJ. TODD, we ex
pect to show that whatever this pretended
discovery In the woods may have been--an
illusion, a fabrication, or q reality-Mr.
Todd did not form one OF that. that forest
bis saddle, nor his saddle bag, nor
anything that belongs to him. We
expect TO leave the witness Turner, with
his brush fence and his table cloth, and
'the supposed horse Of Marsteller,' and
the skulking woman, and the reclining
gentleman, to whom he made such respect.
ful ealutation, and then thoughtfully and
risin' curos'ty,' which secretes him in the
pines, where, though prone upon his face,
with vision intercepted, he still hears the
droning Of q fancied conversation not one
word OF which can be understood.
"All this, i say, we expect to leave far to
the left OF us, while we, unconscious OF
hahn or danger, pursue our way over the
most frequented roads from DR.. Readings,
| on Cedar Run, back to our house In Man
| assas, travel OF some fourteen miles, oc-
| cupyiDg, in all, the space Of about four
hours, a needful and proper time, from the
state Of the highways upon that day, the
hilly 'blacb-jack' region they traverse,
THE PLACES WHERE WE STOPPED,
the people we conversed with, and the
| gates we opened and shut.
Sand we further expect TO prove, IL per-
mitted by the court, that Turner's attempt
| to connect the name of Mr.. Todd with the
salacious scene in the woods, together with
| his subsequent versions OF the story, has
| not only involved this swift witness Of
| scandal In the grossest contradictions and
falsehoods and loaded down his soul with
perjury, hut It was also smiled upon by
BoOine, a suspended member OF the church,
and his uncle, Hornbaker-men who have
| long been hostile to MIR. Todd-and that
these men began to stir up the matter and
| to gather the worldly and dlsaffected ele-
ments OF the community, and, under great
show OF solicitude for the purity Of the
| pulpit they have induced some few honest
and we'll disposed people to favor them and
so give them credit In this attempt to blast
and ruin the character Of minister of the
| Gospel, and one Of our own brethren, for
| ever.
| 1--WE do not now characterize It as an In
famous and diabolical conspiracy Of evil
minded and malicious persons, but we shall
leave 1t to be determined by the proof, as
all seeing eye Of God.
"As our first witness
WILL CALL THE REV. FRANCIS NJ. TODD"
| Francis NJ. Todd, sworn, testified as fol-
lows ~ was born in Bedford county,
| Pennsylvania; my father was clergyman;
| on my fathers side am Scottish Coven-
| anter, and on my mothers side, Huguenot
i graduated from Easton College, Pennsyl.
yania, and about eleven years after gradua-
the Manassas and Nokesville churches for
! ten years last June l. preach at the
| Nokesville church about once IN two weeks.
| i preach ut Manassas In the morning and
1 go to the Prince William, or Nokesville,
church. inthe afternoon. / spent the
night of the 2sd of May at Col.
s9ys Mr sDogs On sna Monday 70 Mo- morning sIng
l reached there about 10. asked Mr..
Slack If he was ready to go down to DIR.
Readings. DR.. Reading was not at church
and he wanted me to visit him. Mr.. Slack
was not ready; he was busy with the bees.
| finally left about 8 o'clock and went to
Readings alone. slept at Readings.
Next morning we had worship before break
| from the table; my watch is railroad time,
fifteen minutes faster than sun time. After
breakfast DR.. Reading and / had some con-
| versation on the poisoning Of woman In
that neighborhood. read the articles
(producedl In two papers on that subject.
was not less than half an hour doing SO.
MY HORSE WAS BEING GRooMED
and ! had to wait. think started from
Readings at about S:45 orc o'clock by rail-
road time. l Travelled about four miles an
hour; the roads were heavy; l went into
Mr.. Slack's; l saw Mrs. Slack and got
couple OF books had left there, and then
took the Montreal paper (Which they take)
and read some articles on stock-veterlnary
articles. read that for some time. think
/ stopped there about half an hour. saw
nothing Of Mr.. Bodine. l stopped at the
church and got sermon / had left there
and examined the fence and gate; the gate
needed new hinges; was there about fif-
teen minutes. then went on and met
Messrs. Moloney, Snow, and Ermentrout
near MELONS gate; 1t must have been about
IL O'Clock. did not talk with them more
than ten minutes. l was introduced to Er-
mentrout by Col. Snow. i arrived home
about 1880. We always have dinner at -.
have no remembrance OF meeting any one
else on the road. Did ROT see the
men in the cornfeld. / did not pass Mrs.
Leila Shaefer's house that morning; / was
not on that road. l am familiar with the
cross. road leading from the Nokesville to
the Dumfries road; there are four or five
gates on that road. | did not meet any
woman, known or unknown. / did not
see any woman at Mitchell's or Bodlne's. j
did not meet Woodyard;
DID NOT MEET TURNER;
he did not speak to me; did not speak to
him. l did not see or lie upon any iaprobe
In those woods that day. My horse was
not hitcLed In the woods that day. saw
no women In buggy that day"
Dr. sunderland; Did you ever see this
btfore" Exhibiting long half rotten
stick.
Witness ~ cav It 10 your study"
Examination continues: 81 carry my
sermons and books, my comb and brush In
a leather bag; sometimes have shirt in
II. might be able to get summer lap
robe in II II the other articles were taken
out. could not get q winter laprobe in
the bag. That is my bag Contents exhib-
ited.l somt times carry II on the pommel,
that Is, near the front OF the saddle, some.
times I'm tho rear Have carried TINT han